Within two years nearly a quarter of all federal jobs will be related to homeland security, a field that did not exist before 9/11, according to the nonprofit Partnership for Public Service. Despite an economy marked by job loss, nearly 2,000 openings in homeland security are listed on the government job web site at http://www.usajobs.gov/.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact:
Cara Cea, (914) 906-9680, ccea@pace.edu
SHORTAGE OF LEADERS PREPARED FOR ATTACKS PROMPTS PACE UNIVERSITY PARTNERSHIP WITH FEDERAL CENTER FOR HOMELAND DEFENSE ON NEW DEGREE
Masters in Management for Public Safety and Homeland Security Professionals is designed with prevention of future attacks in mind
Aimed at local, state, federal and tribal leaders
PLEASANTVILLE, NY, February 22, 2010 – Within two years nearly a quarter of all federal jobs will be related to homeland security, a field that did not exist before 9/11, according to the nonprofit Partnership for Public Service. Despite an economy marked by job loss, nearly 2,000 openings in homeland security are listed on the government job web site at http://www.usajobs.gov/.
But the education system’s capacity to produce educated professionals is lagging behind the increasing demand. In response, Pace University has developed a new Master’s-level program in homeland security under the University and Agency Partnership Initiative (UAPI) created by the federal Center for Homeland Defense and Security, located at the Naval Postgraduate School (NPS).
The program starts this fall at Pace, whose downtown Manhattan campus is just five blocks from the World Trade Center site.
In partnership with the UAPI, the University’s department of criminal justice and security will offer an executive Masters in Management for Public Safety and Homeland Security Professionals. Information about the program is at www.pace.edu/homelandsecurity.
National questions
“The goal of Pace’s initiative is to answer two of the nation’s questions,” said Joseph Ryan, Ph.D., chair of criminal justice and security at Pace and director of the new program.
“First, how can we prevent future attacks and other related disasters?”
“Second, if there is another major event, how do we ensure that we are prepared to respond with existing resources?”
Graduates with this MA from Pace are expected to play critical roles in preventing crime, responding to daily emergencies, disrupting terrorist attacks, protecting against human and natural hazards, and managing large-scale public safety plans.
The program will:
• Educate and prepare a national cadre of local, state, tribal, and federal leaders to collaborate across professional disciplines and levels of government not only as part of their daily routines, but also to develop new policies, strategies, and organizational arrangements to prevent and respond to future attacks; and
• Continue to help define, through evidence‐based research, the emerging discipline of homeland security and the curriculum components of graduate and executive‐level homeland security education.
Accessible schedules
The program is structured to be accessible for adult students in the field of public safety and homeland security who cannot attend weekly classes. Requirements can be completed in two years, primarily online. The on-campus sessions will be held at Pace’s campus in Pleasantville, NY, in technologically “smart” classrooms located 30 miles from New York City off the Taconic State Parkway.
Students will be required to develop an electronic portfolio or “ePortfolio” to showcase their coursework from their 12, three credit courses, the final product of which will be the culminating work or capstone of the program.
“Pace’s master’s degree focuses on bridging the gap between theory and practice and between what is happening now and what we may face in the future,” said Ryan.
Professional leadership
The program is under the aegis of Ryan, a retired New York City police detective who is an expert in violent crimes and community policing as a tool in the war on terrorism. He has chaired a NYPD advisory group for the U.S. Department of Justice that developed security strategies for the 1996 summer Olympics and testified on risk management before the Congressional sub-committee on National Security, Emerging Threats and International Relations.
One of his recent studies was an impact evaluation of an executive program and a master’s degree in homeland security offered at the Naval Postgraduate School’s Center for Homeland Defense and Security found that their master’s program had a completion rate of 89 percent compared to a national average for all master’s programs that ranges between 23 and 71 percent. The success of this endeavor was the close working relationship between faculty and students, which Ryan indicated is the goal he is setting for Pace’s new master’s degree.
Financial aid
Applicants to the new Pace program may be eligible for federally assisted student loans and funding from private sources. Pace University participates in the Yellow Ribbon program for former military personnel. Tuition is $794 per credit. The first session begins August 20.
For more information about the program, Pace, or any of its schools, visit www.pace.edu/homelandsecurity or call the admissions office (212/346-1323) or external relations office (212/346-1996).
About Pace University
For 104 years Pace University has produced thinking professionals by providing high quality education for the professions on a firm base of liberal learning amid the advantages of the New York metropolitan area. A private university, Pace has campuses in New York City and Westchester County, New York, enrolling nearly 13,000 students in bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral programs in its Lubin School of Business, Dyson College of Arts and Sciences, Lienhard School of Nursing, School of Education, School of Law, and Seidenberg School of Computer Science and Information Systems.
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